Fiber: Its Importance In Your Diet

Last updated September 2009
Edited by: Guy Slowik, FRCS

Putting It All Together

Here is a summary of the important facts and information related to Fiber: Its Importance In Your Diet.

  • Fiber is a special type of carbohydrate Carbohydrates constitute the main source of energy for all body functions; the most important being saccharides, starch, cellulose, and gum. that passes through the human digestive system virtually unchanged, without being broken down into nutrients.

  • Fiber has a positive influence on the digestion process from start to finish.

  • Fiber is found only in food that come from plants, including all-natural cereals, whole-grain breads, beans, fruits, vegetables, and nuts.

  • A good diet should contain approximately 25 to 30 grams of fiber a day, but the average American eats less than half of that.

  • When incorporating more fiber in your diet, it's best to start slowly and to eat a wide variety of fiber-rich foods, since different types of fiber do different jobs in the body.

  • Fiber helps relieve constipation and hemorrhoids, can help keep weight under control, and can help prevent certain diseases such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes, diverticular disease A range of conditions that develop from the presence of one of more small pouches that protrude out of the normally smooth wall of the colon; these pouches can become inflamed and cause symptoms that include abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea, and bleeding from the rectum., gallstones, and kidney stones.

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